Northeast students make presentations on chosen careers

Roger Bryant for the Daily News

Published 6:30 am, Friday, May 20, 2016

A group of Northeast Middle School students is wasting no time preparing for the careers they hope to embrace some day.

Several students from Jorge Pena’s career/technical education class gave PowerPoint presentations Monday in the Northeast Middle School auditorium, providing details on careers as varied as engineer, law professor and dancer/choreographer.

Bosley’s presentation included her video interview with veteran Clare dance instructor/choreographer Claudia Newman, who achieved her dream of operating her own studio, the Newman School of Dance.

“You need to get all the education you can,” Newman told Bosley in the video. “You need to have a plan. You need to be persistent, and work that plan.”

Bosley’s PowerPoint presentation also included information on the different types of dance, the top five dance colleges, educational requirements and starting salaries. A chart showed the advantages and disadvantages of choosing a career as a choreographer. One disadvantage was the relatively low pay: “You might have to work a second job to make it financially,” she said.

However, she said such sacrifices would be worth it.

“I absolutely love dancing … It’s my passion,” Bosley said.

She even did a quick tap dance at the request of her fellow students.

As for Klinski, she told her peers she has been dancing since early childhood.

“My mom put me in a dance class when I was 2 years old and I just really liked it,” she said.

Her research uncovered facts including “slow but sure” growth in the choreography field and the likelihood of injuries for dancers. She also noted that a dancer/choreographer must keep in shape.

Connor O’Malley also found “slow but sure” growth in his chosen field of engineering. Describing himself as “more analytical than … emotional,” O’Malley indicated he was leaning toward chemical engineering.

He said he felt he would do well in a field that requires teamwork, creativity and attentiveness. His presentation included an audio interview with his dad, who is an engineer.

While Livingston found some downsides to a career as an architect, he said it’s a job that can leave a legacy.

“Most of the things will outlive you … so you’ll have a stamp on the world,” he said.

Mariah Hargis said she would like to be a law professor because she believes she has the ability to “tolerate and teach students.”

Her rapid presentation listed George Mason University in Virginia as a possible college, and included a list of interview questions she might be asked if she is someday in the running to be a law professor.

Pena said the presentations were the culmination of a process that began with students “going through a battery of tests to see what their preferences are and what their learning styles are.” A career test was aimed at aligning their personalities with possible careers.

Students then took the information and assembled it into PowerPoint presentations.

“All in all, they learned a lot about their (possible) careers,” Pena said.

He said it was the students’ idea to present their findings to fellow students. He added that he admired their willingness “to stand in front of a big group.”